This post is based on an interview we conducted with Molly in April 2023.
Real Money Talk is our series where we interview Australians from all walks of life about their personal finances. The views expressed are those of the interviewees, based on their experiences with money, and as such are not necessarily representative of Spaceship's views.
We have changed the name of the interviewee for their privacy.
Overview
Name: Molly
Age: 24
Where do you live? London
Please tell us a bit about yourself.
I am a 24 year old Engineer originally from Perth now living in London.
What's your current net worth?
About $35,000.
How does it break down?
- Shares: $1,000
- Spaceship Voyager accounts: $2,000
- Car: $30,000 (current value estimate)
- Super: $40,0000
- Savings: $5,000
Do you have any debts?
- Car loan:$20,000,
- HECS: $20,000
How did you build your net worth?
Salary sacrificing, taking opportunities at work for small bonuses and adding little bits to Spaceship Voyager every month.
Earn
Tell us a bit about your career.
I graduated high school in Perth and went straight into studying in Tasmania.
I got an internship at a large company and then subsequently secured a job with them in Perth.
I work in offshore construction and so volunteered to work offshore as much as possible to gain experience and because a bonus is paid for time offshore and on site.
I was then offered an opportunity to work in London for one to two years on an expat deal and took it!
Do you have any income sources outside your job? How much do you earn from each and how did you develop them?
No side hustles - all of my time is taken up with work!
What’s been important for you to learn about money?
Take opportunities to gain experience equally to opportunities for more money. Put in work to build your network and don't forget to develop your soft skills. These things will pay off later!
Save
What's your savings rate? How has it changed over time?
Currently almost 0% (oops) but this is because I am spending all my extra cash on travel. Being located in London makes travel to Europe so easy!
During uni I was saving more like 30% from my part time job. While working as an engineer in Perth I was saving more like 50% of my income.
I also salary sacrifice an extra 8% to my super trying to take advantage of the FHSS.
Do you have a budget?
Yes and it looks like 30% living expenses, 10% to Spaceship Voyager, 20% to debts and 40% travel!
How much do you spend per year?
I almost don't want to say but I guess at the moment living for travel I am spending about $50,000.
Do you make purchase decisions carefully, or are you loose with your money?
I am living fast and loose - this will all change on my return to Perth but for now just trying to make the most of those cheap flights to Europe.
How is your work-life balance?
Maybe 70% work and 30% life on a regular week but it's more like two weeks working a lot of extra hours and then a week off travelling.
What's your favourite thing to spend money on?
Travel! I am trying to tick off most European countries and most big cities with my time left living in London.
Invest
How do you invest?
I invest a regular amount every month out of my pay and then any bonus pay I get from working offshore I put into a savings account or invest in individual shares.
What's been your best investment?
Investing in developing soft skills (my work has a great program for this and are very supportive) as well as investing in my network. It's really powerful to get your name out there and making a lot of connections in my industry. It's amazing that there are so many people across the world that I can draw on for their knowledge and support.
Share wise I was lucky to buy shares in a company which really took off in the last couple years which has seen a 170% increase in value!
What’s been your worst investment?
Bad quality clothes - these just have to be replaced so it's worth buying better quality products less regularly.
What’s been your overall return?
I don't get much back from my shares yet but they have all been in the last two to three years so this will come.
How are you building wealth?
Regularly investing in Spaceship funds as well as salary sacrificing so I can use the FHSSS to buy a house when I get back to Perth.
What are your main roadblocks to building wealth? How are you addressing them?
I have a HECS debt and car loan which I definitely need to clear before I buy a house but I haven't really focused on these in the last year. I am planning to start paying them off quicker when I am travelling less.
Do you have a target net worth you want?
No amount in mind but I would like to pay off my HECS debt and car loan in the next two years and then buy a house in the next three years. This will be a bit of a security net for me.
Behaviour
When did you make your first significant behavioural shift towards wealth building?
Once I got my first full time job I could budget and save properly. I found this almost impossible at uni but once getting a full time job I could make a budget and actually stick to it!
If you could start again, what would you do differently?
Nothing really - I think I did the best I could with what I had. I would just tell my younger self not to stress about saving when my income couldn't really support that anyway! Plenty of time to save later so you might as well enjoy hanging out with your friends and living your life when you can.
What are some mistakes you’ve made along the way?
Actually return the clothes that you order and find out don't fit... I tended to not be bothered and either donated them or gave them away after they sat in my closet for six months.
Do you have any worries about retirement? If so, how are you planning to address them?
Not really - my super fund is pretty good and I am taking advantage of salary sacrificing to use the FHSSS to buy a house.
How are you learning about building wealth?
Mostly chats with family and friends - being open about salary, saving and investing helps keep me on track and shows me opportunities I hadn't thought of. I also read articles and listen to podcasts.
Do you give to charity? If so, what percentage of your time/money do you give?
Yeah I tend to donate to causes I care about as often as I can.
We want to hear your Real Money Talk
At Spaceship we’re big believers in sharing our money stories. We want to hear yours, too. In our ongoing Real Money Talk series, members of our community share what they’ve learned about managing money. We’d love you to take part. Here’s a link to our Real Money Talk survey where you can share your story.
